Artisan Bread and BYU Lacrosse Game

My mom and dad are leaving tomorrow morning to go home.  I took them over to Josh and Mere's for another visit with Ainsley.  When we came home, my mom and I made Artisan Bread.

Doesn't it look amazing?  It is delicious and so easy to make.  You mix up the dough in 5 minutes in a bucket with a tight fitting lid with a small hole drilled in the top so the gases can escape.  Let it rise, chill, then pull off dough for however big a loaf you want to make.  You shape them by hand, either round or oval.  It is crusty on the outside and tender and chewy on the inside.  You slice it staring on one end and then stand it on that end on your counter or bread board.  No need to put it in a bag.  That actually will soften it and then it loses it's texture.  Yum, yum, yum.

Duff and Christine headed for the BYU lacrosse game against Chapman.  I stayed home with my parents.  It was too cold and damp for them to sit outside at it.

BYU finally won the game at the end of the 2nd overtime.  Crazy!  There is a fireside tomorrow evening.  Several of the players are staying at the Taylor's house since Spencer is on the team.  His sister took Christine to meet the goalie.  He is blonde and darling and she has a bit of a 'crush'.  Haha! Duff and Chris enjoyed their 'daddy-daughter' date.

Excursion to Torrance and San Pedro

While my parents are here, they needed to go to San Pedro and pick up some legal documents in boxes for Linda Lu from her accountant to take back to AZ.  She is the executor of her mother's estate.

Duff and I drove them and made an afternoon out of it.  We got lunch at Der Weinerschnitzel for old times sake.  Good memories!

First stop:  the accountant's office.

We saw the Vincent Thomas Bridge.

The Vincent Thomas Bridge is a 1,500-foot long suspension bridge, opened in 1963, crossing the Los Angeles Harbor  linking San Pedro, withTerminal Island.  It is named for California Assemblyman Vincent Thomas of San Pedro. It is the fourth longest suspension bridge in California. It is also the bridge with the 76th longest span in the world. The clear height of the navigation channel is approximately 185 ft.  I remember when it was built and I remember the first time I drove across it.  My parents had taken us kids out for a Sunday Drive and we paid 25 cents for the toll.  It was a clear, beautiful afternoon, but I was terrified the car would fall off and we would plunge to our death in the ocean! Haha!

Next we drove past the stake center in San Pedro on 9th street.  It is still a gorgeous classy building.  One of a kind.  We attended stake conference there for many years and I went to dances and funerals and wedding receptions and YW Beehive activities there.

Down Western Ave. Past Peck Park.

So many Pioneer Day celebrations there!

The pancake breakfast in the morning.

The men's beard growing contest! hahaha!

Lots of park games.

Dirty and sweaty and covered with grime and picnic food, but much fun.

Then to PCH and the old theater where we went to see The Sound of Music as a family.  And the restaurant where Jean Maughan took my mom and I to lunch and we filled out my application to BYU.

ANZA.

The street I grew up on.

Funny how things are the same and yet not.  We remember them differently in our younger minds.

The house I grew up in looks a wreck now.

Back in the day, it was one of the prettiest homes in the whole neighborhood.

My mom insisted on getting out of the car and going up to the front door.

I went with her because sometimes she still needs to be steadied since her hip surgery.

No one answered.

The door my dad so carefully installed is still there and looks good.  Everything else, not so much.  It was sad.  :(

On our way back to the car, we noticed by brother's initials in the sidwalk.  I remember when he put them there.  That brought back lots of interesting feelings.  I miss my brother.  I miss the person he used to be once upon a time.  He is estranged from our family right now.  I hope one day he can find that person again.

By the time we got back to Dove Canyon, we were exhausted.  We kind of didn't feel good.  I thought maybe I had been a little car sick.  Then I realized it was the emotion of the trip.  It was hard to see the hurt in my mom and dad's faces about their home.  They decided they don't need to go back again.  Guess we can close that chapter.



President's Dinner

Tonight I had all the Primary Presidents over for dinner.  We ate in the dining room and I made Cafe Rio pork salad with all the trimmings for dinner and a hot from the oven peach cobbler with vanilla bean ice cream for dessert.  I decorated the table in warm mexican colors and candles and flowers and used the serapes from Mexico that I got when we picked Josh up from his mission.  It looked and felt fun.

Meredith GRACIOUSLY had the family over to their place so we could have some quiet and privacy for our dinner meeting.  It is a time where I can do some training and also that the presidents can talk together and share ideas and questions and bounce things off of each other as to what is working or not, how do they approach this or that.  What we talk about at this dinner twice a year stays at the dinner and it gives me a good reference point of direction to go in for various training in the wards.

These are some of the greatest women I know.  We suddenly realized it was approaching 10pm and we were still going strong!  So many good things to share.

Meeting Oma and Opa

Oma and Opa came in from AZ to meet Miss Ainsley.

The next generation.

They're lovin' it!



Baby Bun.

Natalie and Robert are expecting 'Baby Bun' the first week of August!  She is almost 15 weeks and doing much better with the morning sickness finally.  If you ask John if he wants a new baby he says NO.  How about a baby brother?  NO.  What about a baby sister?  NO.  haha!

Congratulations to the Newell's!

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY

Happy Day!

Mike and Adrianne made heart shaped homemade pizza's for dinner.

Josh, Meredith, Ainsley, and Gidget came over to celebrate with all of us.



From Valentine's Day

Meredith got this outfit for Ainsley to wear on Valentine's Day for daddy Josh.

Daddy and Daughter are quite smitten with each other!

Long day.
--Early morning meetings.  Like 6:30am early morning.  Which means I get up at 5:15.
--Home for a while.  Foothill Ranch ward conference.  Great meetings.  Peeked into Mission Lake's sharing time.  They were doing a stick puppet show using a table turned on it's side with a table cloth.  Really fun, cute, and taught the doctrine well.  The children were very engaged.
--Home for dinner by 5.  Duff had the potatoes in the oven baking.  All I had to do was get the pork tenderloin baking and the vegetables and salad done.  Christine did the rolls.  It was nice to have so much help since I had been gone all day.
--We watched the Grammy's.  Adele.  I like her style.  No gimmicks, no skimpy clothing, no outlandish dancing.  Simple and straightforward.  She won the most awards.  What a concept!
--Tribute to Whitney Houston by Jennifer Hudson.  It was beautiful.  It makes me sad that Whitney's life was so tormented.  Bill O'Reilly had a spot on his show Monday regarding her death and in the Huffington Post.  He is a no nonsense guy, and makes you think. Celine Dion gave an interview as well on her fear of Hollywood.  She said you do your singing job and then you go home.  You don't hang out at parties or you end up in trouble. All of that aside, I loved Whitney's music and her effortless voice.  I danced and sang to her songs over and over again. She made you get in touch with your emotions in song.   What a talent!  She will be missed.
Something to think about:

When You Need To Be In More Than One Place At A Time

Christine went to Winter Formal for her school tonight.  She went with a bunch of girlfriends.  Mere and Josh and Ainsley came to help with hair again.  Simpler this time, but still with the wrap around braid.  I am hair challenged.  I can do a lot of fine things with my hands but when it comes to hairstyles, my fingers are all thumbs.  Haha.

They had a great time at the dance.  It was held at the Honda Center and was called Orangetopia because it included high schools from all over orange county together.

I fixed up the bassinette from the garage so cute.  Ainsley has never layed in it once.  Too many anxious arms willing to hold and cuddle her instead!

Duff and I had the Worldwide Leadership Training this evening.  We got there and the time got mixed up so we could either come back an hour later or attend to our other things.  We have the option to watch it online, so that is what we did.  We left and got the grocery shopping done, dinner done, and visited with the fam.  The baby is changing everyday.  They grow up too fast.  Papa Duff is quite smitten!

Girl's Day Out

Ainsley had a doctor's appointment for a weight gain check.  Since she is a tiny one, they just wanted to monitor it this week.  She gained 5 ounces in 4 days.  Yup.  She and mama are doing just fine.  Things are so different than when I had my children.  I like the changes and progress.  I was very impressed with their pediatrician.

We were starving at this point, and stopped to grab some lunch at In-n-Out.  We had to wait soooo long at the doctor's office.  They were busy.

We headed to Alia's in San Clemente for Ainsley's newborn photo shoot.  Alia took Meredith's maternity pictures too.  They go way back and have been good friends for a long time.  Alia is one of those photographers who has it in the genes.  Like my cousin, Roberta.  And Christine.  And Adrianne.  People:  I need lessons! haha...

What a fun afternoon we had dressing her up and down for the pictures.  I can't wait to see them!

Fun day!

Happy Anniversary

Mike and Adrianne.

Happy Four Years.

We love you guys!

(Did ministering visits with Lake Forest ward as a follow up to their ward conference a few weeks ago.  I went with their RS president. I drove home with the radio off trying to process our experience.  There is something quite unable to put into words when you are involved with the Spirit in ministering one on one. I cannot explain what happened tonight.  There are no words.  The veil was thin and the love of heaven was thick.)  

My Martha Dreams

FINALLY.  Duff and I got the small garage straightened up.  I had to wince that the sleeping bags and tent used at Girl's Camp last summer were still laying around.

Yes! (arm pump)  We organized all the canning supplies together in one cupboard.  It is so nice to have that done.  I've been wanting to do that for y e a r s.  We redistributed the weight of some of our food storage on the shelves.  I would do so many things differently now.  But I didn't know then what we've learned over the last 20 years.  I would make lots of changes to our cupboards knowing what I know now. Water under the bridge I guess.  This is when I lament that we don't have a basement.

Folding chairs were between the 2 garages and we got those consolidated to one.  Lots of stuff like that. I wish once you cleaned and organized it would just stay that way. Haha!  Continual progress on 'a place for everything and everything in it's place.'

I like Martha Stewart.  Say and feel what you may about her, she knows her stuff and has more good ideas and things than a person could ever do in a lifetime.  Often I will say something like, "Oh!  I want to be like Martha that way." or "Oh!  That is such a good idea.  I want to do that like Martha."  Especially when it comes to organizing.  While I was waiting in the grocery store check out line I picked up her new magazine on organizing and thumbed through it.  Can the rooms in my house be like her's please?  Then I get to thinking:  Well, she lives alone.  She has a staff.  For just about everything.  Inside and outside.  Then I realize my Martha dreams are not realistic.  We are a big family coming and going all the time.  We are pretty much our own 'staff'. Then I chuckle and get back to living my own life.

...but can my cupboards stay organized please......? haha!

(Had a presidency meeting.  3 hours.  We had a lot to go over, plan, and discuss.  Thanks to Brother Lenon, our high councilor.  He always stays the whole time and gives us such good counsel.)